Indira Gandhi Indira Gandhi Indira Nehru Gandhi was born on November 19, 1917 and would be the only child of Jawaharlal and Kamala Nehru. Being influenced and inspired by her parents, Indira Gandhi rose to power in India and eventually became prime minister. She dedicated her life to progress in her country despite the overwhelming problems and challenges she encountered. Her road to power and politics started when she turned twelve years of age. During the time of British imperialism, many Indian National Congress workers from Allahabad did not know when or if the British would arrest them or search their homes. In order to find out when this would occur, the Monkey Brigade was formed. Although Indira claimed to have thought of the idea, some asserted that the Monkey Brigade was the idea of the Congress. In any event, Indira became the leader of this children's group whose purpose was to help end British control in India. Being its leader, she delivered speeches while other children actually warned the people who were going to be arrested. The Congress figured that the British would not suspect children of participating in such involvement. Although some deemed it a joke, Indira took her job very seriously.

One of the most significant actions of the Monkey Brigade involved Indira. The Congress party's top officials were organizing a civil disobedience movement. After the meeting, the documents containing the plans of the movement were placed in the trunk of a car with Indira in the back seat. Before the car was ready to leave the area, a police inspector stopped the car in order to search it. However, Indira pleaded with him not to inspect the car because the delay would cause her to arrive late at school. Fortunately, the inspector believed her and the car was not searched. In 1938, Indira finally joined the Indian National Congress Party, something she always longed to do. Soon afterwards in 1942, she married journalist Feroze Gandhi to whom she eventually bore two sons. Soon after the couple was married, they were sent to prison on charges of subversion by the British. Her first and only imprisonment lasted from September 11, 1942 until May 13, 1943 at the Naini Central Jail in Allahabad. Fortunately, India won its independence from Britain in 1947.

In that same year, Indira's father Jawaharlal Nehru became prime minister and served until his death in 1964. Since her mother had died in 1936, Indira acted as hostess and confidante and traveled with Nehru to meet famous political figures. Later in 1959, Gandhi became the fourth woman elected president of the Indian National Congress. After her father's death, the new Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri appointed Indira Gandhi as minister of information and broadcasting. This position was the fourth highest ranking position in the Cabinet. Many Indians were illiterate. Therefore, radio and television played a major part in informing them. As minister, she most importantly encouraged the making of inexpensive radios and started a family planning program. After Shastri's death in 1966, Indira Gandhi served as prime minister until India held the next election. She won that election, and in 1967, became one of the first women ever elected to lead a democracy. In 1971, Gandhi was re-elected by campaigning with the slogan "Abolish Poverty." However in 1975, Gandhi was found guilty of violating election laws.

Later, the conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court of India. Also, to control population growth, Gandhi implemented a voluntary sterilization program. As a result, adversaries criticized her and her administration in general. To secure her power and because of escalating riots, on June 26, 1975, Indira Gandhi declared a state of emergency which limited the personal freedom of Indians. Also, she ordered the arrests of the main opposition leaders. In her opinion, her dictatorship was for the good of India. But she allowed free elections in 1977, and the Indian people voted her out of office. She regained her position as prime minister in 1980. Unfortunately on October 31, 1984, Indira Gandhi's Sikh bodyguards assassinated her. They did so to avenge the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Gandhi had ordered the storming in June because of what her government considered terrorist activity of extremist Sikhs who had occupied the Temple. As prime minister, Gandhi tried to improve the lives of Indians. With her neighbors, the Soviet Union and China, she improved relations. She also promoted science and technology.

In 1971, India sent its first satellite into space. Economically, Indira Gandhi led India to become one of the fastest growing economies in the world toward the end of her time as prime minister. Annotated Bibliography Ashby, Ruth and Deborah Gore Ohrn, eds. Herstory. New York: Viking, 1995. This book features women who have had a profound impact on the world. It provides the reader with concise biographies of 120 women from Queen Hatshepsut to contemporary women. The editors divide it into three sections: the Dawn, From Revolution to Revolution, and the Global Community. Although the first section mostly consists of royalty or the elite, the other parts cover a wide variety of women, queens and subjects alike. One of the women presented is Indira Gandhi. Her biography includes her early years, family life, and education. It also discusses her rise to fame by holding the positions of president of the National Congress party, minister of information and broadcasting, and finally prime minister of India. Even though the biography is brief, it highlights the main aspects of each woman's life. One doing research would want to further develop these points.

Each biography also contains information concerning the time the woman was born, a description of her family, significant aspects of her life, and finally her death, if applicable, in a well-organized fashion. Besides explaining famous women, the editors include brief descriptions on women's life in general from prehistory to the present. In order to assist the reader, the editors arranged the index by geography and occupation of the women. The most important purpose of this book is to inform that women did contribute to this world and need to be recognized. Although nobody can dispute the significance of men's accomplishments, one must realize that women also impacted and continue to impact our world. The editors, each involved in women's studies, commented that history is not complete or accurate without women's history. The female editors and contributors successfully describe women in history from women's perspectives. Bhatia, Krishan. Indira: A Biography of Prime Minister Gandhi. New York: Praeger, 1974. This book traces the life of Indira Gandhi. It describes her family life and the pain she had to endure when her parents Jawaharlal and Kamala Nehru and her grandfather Motilal Nehru were sent to prison as a result of the Indian freedom movement.

The author also discusses Indira Gandhi's education in India, Geneva and London. In addition, the author, one of India's most respected journalists, includes how Nehru, who was extremely concerned about the education of his only child, wrote Indira many letters about world history. Since he was in jail at the time, Nehru could not teach her himself. The author also describes her marriage to Feroze Gandhi, a Parsi newspaper executive and politician. Although the couple remained together, their busy schedules kept them apart at times. He also describes how Indira served as her father's hostess and confidante which gave her experience in politics. In becoming prime minister, Indira Gandhi needed to fight to maintain her power and faced serious challenges in order to lead over 550 million people. Although being famous to the world, Indira, as Bhatia concludes and she herself commented, was a very private person. To write his book, Bhatia met with Indira Gandhi, her supporters, and those who opposed her. He also explains both her successes and failures in order to be as objective as possible. D'Amico, Francine and Peter R. Beckman, eds. Women in World Politics.

Westport: Bergin and Garney, 1995. This book examines the effect that women have had on world politics and what women are actually involved in politics. Besides discussing female world leaders, such as presidents and prime ministers, the book also includes activists and revolutionaries and others not directly appointed or elected to a specific political position. It also considers the concept of gender and how it affects politics and what impact culture has on politics. All of the contributors present different views on world politics and different perspectives on how women participate in world politics. The editors divide the book into two sections. In the beginning of the book, the contributors explain how individual women leaders and representatives rose to political prominence and examine their policies, decisions, and leadership. In addition, the authors include how society views women political leaders, and the affect that gender has on acquiring and enforcing power. One famous politician that was written about was Indira Gandhi. By exploring her political acumen, the author informs the reader of Gandhi's rise to prime minister of India. It also includes Gandhi's family background, path to power, relations with the United States, efforts at regional hegemony, and Gandhi's perception of herself.

To further enhance this section, women who have participated in world politics either as leaders or held prominent positions provide the reader with a first-hand experience of political life. Each offers a different view on women in world politics. The second half of the book explores how ordinary women influenced and affected politics. This book includes many tables that give the reader insightful information into how men's political views compare and contrast to women's views. In addition, the book serves as a guide to understanding female political figures. Drieberg, Trevor. Indira Gandhi. New York: Drake, 1973. This book provides insightful knowledge into the life of Indira Gandhi. In order to give the reader an accurate view, Trevor Drieberg, a political reporter in India, traces the path of Gandhi's political life from its earliest beginnings until the early seventies. He explains how the desire for independence from the British affected Indira Gandhi in the early part of her life. In addition, this book emphasizes the role her father Jawaharlal Nehru played in her life. She served as his hostess since her mother died. In return, he served as her primary inspiration. By accompanying him on world tours and public events, she learned world politics first hand.

The author also explores Indira's rise to political fame by tracing her steps from entering the Congress party, becoming minister of information and broadcasting, and more importantly, her becoming prime minister. This book includes four appendixes to provide the reader with additional information concerning Indira Gandhi. The first appendix contains selections from her speeches and writing from 1966 until 1972. The second one includes a letter to President Richard Nixon. The letter reveals India's problems with Pakistan and relations with the U.S. Appendix three discusses the treaty of peace, friendship and cooperation between the Republic of India and other foreign countries. Finally, appendix four lists the twelve points of the Congress party's plan for progress in 1971. Drieberg believes that Gandhi is significant since she dominated Indian politics yet was elected democratically and used the almost unlimited power in a democratic manner. From the author's explanation and description of her political life, one can gain useful information concerning Indira Gandhi. "India." URL: . (Accessed 3 November 1998). This useful site gives a basic overview of Indian history. It is divided into four sections.

The first provides the reader with a background of the birth of the Indus Valley Civilization and the rise of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam. The second section describes how Britain brought imperialism to India. The third section explains how India was transformed from British rule to an independent country and Jawaharlal Nehru's rise to prime minister. The final section primarily focuses on Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It describes how she split her Congress party and resorted to repressive measures, which lasted until 1977, to ensure her power. Although she ended up losing power, she surprisingly regained her position. The site highlights the main events and also points out influential and notable Indians. "Indira Gandhi." URL: . (Accessed 3 November 1998). This site contains a brief biography about Indira Gandhi. It traces her birth, education, and political life. The majority of the article focuses on her political life starting with her joining the Congress party, becoming its president, being appointed minister of information and broadcasting, and finally being elected prime minister. Although it briefly informs the reader of her controversial political career, it does not thoroughly explore any one aspect of her life.

However, the site highlights the most important aspects of the political life of Indira Gandhi. "Indira Gandhi." URL: ~dbois/ . (Accessed 3 November 1998). This site provides a basic biographical overview of Indira Gandhi's life. Although it mentions members of her family and her education, it primarily focuses on her political career. It includes both positive and negative aspects of her political life. It traces her rise to political power first as president of the Congress party, then minister of information and broadcasting, and finally to prime minister. By using this site, one can gain a basic overview of Indira Gandhi's life. As a result, the article is not in-depth but supplies points that one could use in further research. Krishnan, Narayana Kalyana. "The Elections and the Political Struggle in India." World Marxist Review. 28(July 1985): 97-102. This article discusses and emphasizes the main factor that led to a victory in the December 1984 election for the Indian National Congress party. The primary factor resulted from the death of former prime minister, Indira Gandhi.

As a result of her death, Indians became aware of the threat to the unity and security of their country. Just before her death, the government had the army storm Punjab because of Sikh extremists. Most Indians became very concerned about their nation's unity, integrity, and security. This became the central political factor in the parliamentary general elections. Therefore, the party that could assure to create unity, integrity, and security would emerge victorious. As it happened, the Indian people felt that the Indian National Congress could achieve this goal. Rajiv Gandhi, son of Indira Gandhi, claimed that only the Indian National Congress could accomplish this goal. Also, many Indians felt sympathetic to the Congress because of Indira's death. The writer also points out that the Congress failed in such states as Andhra Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Sikkim. This resulted from the dislike of the undemocratic actions of the Congress Central Governments. The people of India expected the Government to end their anguish and improve living conditions. In addition, Rajiv Gandhi promised peace, non-alignment, and friendship with countries and especially the Soviet Union.

The author of this article, who is the Secretary of the National Council of the Communist Party of India, said that his party would work with the Rajiv Government to bring about these positive plans. This article gives insight into the election from someone who is active in politics. The author, who is a communist, also provides the reader with information from past elections and the reactions of the Communist Party. One can also gain a feeling of how Indians felt shortly after Indira Gandhi's death. Masani, Zareer. Indira Gandhi. New York: Crowell, 1976. This book presents the life of Indira Gandhi. The author, a historian, begins by explaining her family life and ends with the events of 1975. In discussing her early years, the author describes how Indira Gandhi was surrounded by politics and political figures. Motilal Nehru, her grandfather, and also Jawaharlal Nehru, her father, were two influential leaders in the campaign for Indian independence. Indira also had contact with Mahatma Gandhi, the primary leader for independence. In 1947, India gained independence and Indira's father became prime minister.

Indira became her father's official hostess and political confidante. As a result, she acquired an abundance of political knowledge. This proved helpful to her when she finally achieved the position of prime minister of India. In this position, Gandhi encountered many problems such as overpopulation, low food production, financial difficulties, and poor foreign relations. Masani explores the hard times Indira Gandhi had to deal with and her determination to end those problems as prime minister. This book is a thorough biography of the life of Indira Gandhi until 1975. One can gain a strong sense of what factors influenced her political actions throughout her time as prime minister. In addition, the author revised his book in order to include the Emergency that occurred in the middle of 1975. To Masani, the Emergency resulted from economic and political problems. He also called democracy in India a "Western Liberal Illusion." According to him, the masses were not properly represented. The book is objective and provides the reader with even more insight into Indira Gandhi's political life. Moraes, Dom. Indira Gandhi. Boston: Little Brown, 1980. This book describes the life of one of the world's most popular women, Indira Gandhi.

It gives a very informative and well-written portrayal of her. The author, a correspondent and memoirist, divides the book into four sections: the inheritance, the ascent, the pinnacle, and the descent of Indira Gandhi. Being the daughter of the active political figure Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi was destined to play an active part in politics. Just as Nehru, Indira, along with her husband Feroze Gandhi, was jailed because of tensions with the British and struggle for independence. When independence was finally gained and Nehru became Prime Minister of India in 1947, Indira was right by his side and highly exposed to politics. Moraes also explains Gandhi's political life. In addition, he devotes an entire chapter to Indira's son Sanjay. He describes Sanjay's four-point program. According to the author, two points, sterilization and destruction of the slums, were factors in the downfall of Indira Gandhi. Moraes initially wrote this book with the cooperation of Indira Gandhi and members of her family. He provides the reader with insight into Indian life, culture, politics, and its history. Overall, his book thoroughly explains the life of India's most famous woman. "Mrs.

Gandhi is Dead, Long Live Gandhi." Economist, 3 November 1984, 35-6. The writer of this article presents Indira Gandhi's assassination. The writer divides the article into four parts. The first informs the reader of the assassination itself. Not only does he mention the murder, but also the writer provides the reader with the event at Amritsar that led to her assassination by her Sikh bodyguards. The writer also provides the reader with the effects of the assassination on both Hindus and Sikhs, and describes India as a divided community. The second section deals with Gandhi's successor and son, Rajiv Gandhi. By including him, the writer informs the reader of what challenges Rajiv Gandhi will face as new prime minister. The third section provides the reader with a brief description of how India improved economically under Indira. Also, the writer includes how Gandhi removed anyone who would challenge her political power. Finally, the writer concludes by examining the growth of violence in India. Although he does not totally blame Gandhi, the writer feels that she failed to check it. Overall, the writer presents a clear description of the divisions in India that Gandhi had to endure. In order to begin to understand India, one must understand this.

The article explains the differences and problems between religion, race, and communities in India. NebulaSearch. Gandhi. URL: (Accessed 30 January 2004). Provides only a brief biography, but the page has many links to other sources on the web. Sahgal, Nayantara. Indira Gandhi: Her Road to Power. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1982. This candid book primary focuses on the political life of Indira Gandhi. According to the author, Gandhi's values differed from those of her father Jawaharlal Nehru and Lal Bahadur Shastri, both of whom were her predecessors. Therefore, her style in dealing with politics was contrary to theirs. To her predecessors, democracy was very important for the growth and development of the nation. Even though Indira Gandhi believed that she was democratic, she did not continue that democratic belief of her father and Shastri. Instead, the writer stresses the fact that Gandhi created a highly centralized government under her command. This can be best seen in the Emergency of 1975-1977. According to the author, the emergency formed a one-party system, strong executive powers, and dynastic succession.

The writer also claims that Gandhi returned back to power in 1980 in order to save Sanjay, one of her sons. Indira felt that the only way to rid the charges against him was to become prime minister again. This book is very interesting especially since the author is related to Gandhi. It provides insight into the political life of Indira Gandhi. The author is not afraid to express her criticism of Gandhi. She also provides a useful list of Indian personalities and a clear definition of these people. In addition, the writer translates a handful of Indian words to assist the reader when reading. Manas: History and Politics, Indira Gandhi Mrs. Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India, 1966-77 and 1980-84. She was assassinated in 1984. Indira Gandhi (1917-1984) was the only child of Kamla and Jawaharlal Nehru. She spent part of her childhood in Allahabad, where the Nehrus had their family residence, and part in Switzerland, where her mother Kamla convalesced from her periodic illnesses. She received her college education at Somerville College, Oxford.

A famous photograph from her childhood shows her sitting by the bedside of Mahatma Gandhi, as he recovered from one of his fasts; and though she was not actively involved in the freedom struggle, she came to know the entire Indian political leadership. After India's attainment of independence, and the ascendancy of Jawaharlal Nehru, now a widower, to the office of the Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi managed the official residence of her father, and accompanied him on his numerous foreign trips. She had been married in 1942 to Feroze Gandhi, who rose to some eminence as a parliamentarian and politician of integrity but found himself disliked by his more famous father-in-law, but Feroze died in 1960 before he could consolidate his own political forces. In 1964, the year of her father's death, Indira Gandhi was for the first time elected to Parliament, and she was Minister of Information and Broadcasting in the government of Lal Bahadur Shastri, who died unexpectedly of a heart attack less than two years after assuming office.

The numerous contenders for the position of the Prime Ministership, unable to agree among themselves, picked Indira Gandhi as a compromise candidate, and each thought that she would be easily manipulable. But Indira Gandhi showed extraordinary political skills and tenacity and elbowed the Congress dons -- Kamaraj, Morarji Desai, and others -- out of power. She held the office of the Prime Minister from 1966 to 1977. She was riding the crest of popularity after India's triumph in the war of 1971 against Pakistan, and the explosion of a nuclear device in 1974 helped to enhance her reputation among middle-class Indians as a tough and shrewd political leader. However, by 1973, Delhi and north India were rocked by demonstrations angry at high inflation, the poor state of the economy, rampant corruption, and the poor standards of living. In June 1975, the High Court of Allahabad found her guilty of using illegal practices during the last election campaign, and ordered her to vacate her seat. There were demands for her resignation. Mrs.

Gandhi's response was to declare a state of emergency, under which her political foes were imprisoned, constitutional rights abrogated, and the press placed under strict censorship. Meanwhile, the younger of her two sons, Sanjay Gandhi, started to run the country as though it were his personal fiefdom, and earned the fierce hatred of many whom his policies had victimized. He ordered the removal of slum dwellings, and in an attempt to curb India's growing population, initiated a highly resented program of forced sterilization. In early 1977, confident that she had debilitated her opposition, Mrs. Gandhi called for fresh elections, and found herself trounced by a newly formed coalition of several political parties. Her Congress party lost badly at the polls. Many declared that she was a spent force; but, three years later, she was to return as Prime Minister of India. The same year, however, her son Sanjay was killed in an airplane crash. In the second, post-Emergency, period of her Prime Ministership, Indira Gandhi was preoccupied by efforts to resolve the political problems in the state of Punjab.

In her attempt to crush the secessionist movement of Sikh militants, led by Jarnail Singh Bindranwale, she ordered an assault upon the holiest Sikh shrine in Amritsar, called the "Golden Temple". It is here that Bindranwale and his armed supporters had holed up, and it is from the Golden Temple that they waged their campaign of terrorism not merely against the Government, but against moderate Sikhs and Hindus. "Operation Bluestar", waged in June 1984, led to the death of Bindranwale, and the Golden Temple was stripped clean of Sikh terrorists; however, the Golden Temple was damaged, and Mrs. Gandhi earned the undying hatred of Sikhs who bitterly resented the desacralization of their sacred space. In November of the same year, Mrs. Gandhi was assassinated, at her residence, by two of her own Sikh bodyguards, who claimed to be avenging the insult heaped upon the Sikh nation. Mrs. Gandhi acquired a formidable international reputation as a "statesman", and there is no doubt that she was extraordinarily skilled in politics.

She was prone, like many other politicians, to thrive on slogans, and one -- Garibi Hatao, "Remove Poverty" -- became the rallying cry for one of her election campaigns. She had an authoritarian streak, and though a cultured woman, rarely tolerated dissent; and she did, in many respects, irreparable harm to Indian democracy. Apart from her infamous imposition of the internal emergency, the use of the army to resolve internal disputes greatly increased in her time; and she encouraged a culture of sycophancy and nepotism. At her death, her older son, Rajiv Gandhi, was sworn in as head of the Congress party and Prime Minister. Obituary of Indira Gandhi, assassinated Indian premier | World news | The Guardian Close Indira Gandhi was born into an unambiguously political household. Her father, Mr Jawaharlal Nehru, was India's first Prime Minister after independence in 1947, and his father, Motilal, had been one of the country's outstanding nationalist leaders. 'As a child,' she said not so long ago, 'all my games were political games.

I was Joan of Arc, perpetually being burned at the stake.' Her father, who had worked closely with Mahatma Gandhi and led his country for 17 years, was a philosopher and thinker, Mrs Gandhi, by contrast, was a woman of action who relied keenly on political instinct rather than deep thoughts. She sought, despite an innate shyness and a certain insecurity, to remain close to the people and to give them, as she once put it, 'a government that works,' but the manner of her death is evidence that she finished her days as one of the world's most controversial leaders Her last months of office were marked by violence and political conflict, most conspicuously evident in clashes with the Sikh community in Punjab and with opposition elements in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Mrs Gandhi's political acumen and resilience became most apparent in January, 1980, when, after three years of opposition forced on her by an electorate disenchanted with her Emergency Rule in the mid-1970s, she once again swept to a convincing victory in the general election.

Aside from those three years, she had been Prime Minister since 1967 at her death, she was 66 years old Her international reputation reached its peak in March last year, when she took her place, in succession to Dr Fidel Castro of Cuba , as chairman of the Nonaligned Movement. Her ostensible aim had been to steer the movement on a course between the superpowers. If she also appeared, on India's behalf, to favour closer relations with the Soviet Union, it was because the Russians tended to go along with her view of the importance of India . Although she had great interest in Western technology, she was also outspoken in her support for nuclear disarmament and a furthering of the North-South dialogue and was a nominee for the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize. These recent achievements were made despite severe setbacks in later years. A few months after her return to office, in 1980, her younger son, Sanjay - then her most likely heir - died in a mysterious air crash, and Sanjay's widow became an acrimonious political opponent. Mrs Gandhi responded to this by calling on her other son, Rajiv, to take Sanjay's place at the head of her entourage.

He became Prime Minister yesterday. But these moves were too late to stop dissent from growing within the ranks of the Congress Party. In elections held in January, last year, Congress lost seats in its strongholds of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. These clashes were followed by violence in the north-eastern state of Assam, when about 3,000 people died in mainly racial incidents. In the Punjab, despite Congress rule, the opposition party of Sikh Akali Dal stepped up its demands for religious and political autonomy. This movement reached its climax in June, when, on Mrs Gandhi's orders, the Indian army stormed the Sikh shrine of the Golden Temple at Amritsar. Possibly thousands died and it was perhaps inevitable that Mrs Gandhi became a Sikh target. Mrs Gandhi was born in 1917. Her childhood was lonely and left permanent scars. When she was three, Mahatma Gandhi launched his first non-cooperation movement against the British Raj. For the next 25 years, prison became the second home of the Nehru family and young Indira grew up in a series of boarding-schools, separated from her parents. Added to her loneliness was the anxiety caused by her mother's failing health and early death.

As Nehru's daughter, Indira found that much was expected of her. Failure to live up to these expectations left her with feelings of inadequacy that help to explain the obsessive tenacity with which she later sought and clung to absolute power. Her poor academic performance, first at school and later at Somerville College, Oxford (she went down after failing prelims three times), disappointed her father. During her years in Britain, in the late 1930s, she struck Nehru's friends in the British labour movement as 'shy and mousy.' Her marriage in 1941 to Mr Feroze Gandhi, however, demonstrated that Indira was no mere appendage of her father. Feroze (no relation to Mahatma Gandhi) was a lower middle-class Parsi. Indira's marriage to him, against the wishes of her father and Mahatma Gandhi, represented a serious breach of convention when mixed marriages were almost unheard of in India. Some years later, she was equally assertive in rejecting the role of a traditional Indian wife. When in 1947, her father became Prime Minister, she opted to live with him as his official hostess and companion.

The decision was fiercely resented by her husband. himself a rising politician with anti-government inclinations, and resulted in a prolonged separation. He died of a heart attack in 1960 By the mid-1950s, she was standing in for her father on goodwill tours abroad and in the internal politics of the Congress Party. In 1959, she was elected party president with Nehru's tacit support. It was in this post that she first demonstrated her more ruthless political skills, plotting the overthrow of a democratically elected Communist government in Kerala state and, according to revelations by Mr Patrick Daniel Moynihan, accepting CIA funds to do so. By the time Nehru died in 1964, his daughter was a well-established national figure and a serious candidate for the prime ministerial succession. An immediate dynastic succession proved impossible and Mrs Gandhi had to bide her time, serving meanwhile as Minister for Information and Broadcasting in the Cabinet of Mr Lal Bahadur Shastri. On Shastri's sudden death in January, 1966, her patience was rewarded.

The Syndicate, a caucus of Congress 'bosses,' decided to install her as Prime Minister on the mistaken assumption that she would be malleable. During the next five years, Mrs Gandhi worked systematically to establish her personal supremacy as undisputed party leader and to revive the flagging popularity of the Congress in a period of serious economic discontent. The enormous powers and patronage of the prime ministership, her own tactical skills, and her gift for well-timed poplist rhetoric proved, in the short-term, an invincible combination. In 1969, she split the Congress Party and purged it of her rivals. By simultaneously nationalising banks and abolishing princely privileges, she succeeded in projecting this power struggle as an ideological battle, with herself leading the forces of progress and egalitarianism. While winning mass support with promises of radical reform, she also unleashed wide repression against the Marxist left, thereby reassuring the middle classes and the business community that she was a sound investment. The spring of 1972 was a high point in Mrs Gandhi's political career. Having won a landslide victory in the general election of 1971, she had gone on to sweep the polls in state-level elections a year later.

Meanwhile, she had also given India her first military victory in the war with Pakistan in December, 1971. Her skilful combination of diplomacy with lightning military action to achieve the independence of Bangladesh, cocking a snook at American and Chinese opposition, finally erased the humiliation of the Sino-Indian war of 1962, established India as the diminant power in the region, and made its Prime Minister the heroine of chauvinistic public opinion. For her very success, however, carried in it the seeds of rapid decline. Having raised popular expectations with pseudo-radical promises, she had no conception of how to fulfil them. Having routed all her foes, domestic and foreign, she had no more alibis for failure. Mrs Gandhi herself did little to discipline corruption and faction-fighting among her followers, while compromising her own moral authority by patronising the shady business ventures of her son, Sanjay.

Lulled into complacency by her previous victories and the cult of personality that surrounded her, she turned a blind eye to genuine mass discontent, trusting instead in the slogan put out by her sycophants, 'Indira is India, India is Indira,' The movement reached its height in June, 1975, when Mrs Gandhi herself was convicted in court for corrupt election practices and Narayan demanded her resignation. Mrs Gandhi's reply was to proclaim a state of emergency, suspend basic civil liberties, impose strict press censorship, and imprison 160,000 opponents, including Narayan and the entire Opposition leadership. It was a measure of Mrs Gandhi's growing isolation from public opinion that she felt confident enough to hold a general election in March 1977 in the expectation of legitimising her autocracy with a popular mandate. The debacle which followed showed that her confidence was not justified, and that her political judgment could be suspect. But it also ended the emergency and restored civil liberties. That she was able to come back against overwhelming personal and political odds less than three years later was evidence of her undoubted toughness and single mindedness.

In the final reckoning, however, she will undoubtedly be remembered less as the heir of the nationalist founding fathers than as the would-be autocrat who would brook no opposition in her determination to provide what she felt, without any strong vision, to be firm, and necessarily firm, government. Nehru Dynasty Nehru Dynasty Harmohan Singh Walia At the very beginning of his book, "The Nehru Dynasty", astrologer K. N. Rao mentions the names ofJawahar Lal's father and grandfather. Jawahar Lal's father was believed to be Moti Lal and Moti Lal's father was one Gangadhar Nehru. And we all know that Jawahar Lal's only daughter was Indira Priyadarshini Nehru; Kamala Nehru was her mother, who died in Switzerland of tuberculosis. She was totally against Indira's proposed marriage with Feroze. Why? No one tells us that! Now, who is this Feroze? We are told, by many that he was the son of the family grocer. The grocer supplied wines, etc. to Anand Bhavan, previously known as Ishrat Manzil, which once belonged to a Muslim lawyer named Mobarak Ali.

Moti Lal was earlier an employee of Mobarak Ali. What was the family grocer's name? One frequently hears that Rajiv Gandhi's grandfather was Pandit Nehru. But then we all know that everyone has two grandfathers, the paternal and the maternal grandfathers. In fact, the paternal grandfather is deemed to be the more important grandfather in most societies. Why is it then nowhere we find Rajiv Gandhi's paternal grandfather's name? It appears that the reason is simply this. Rajiv Gandhi's paternal grandfather was a Muslim gentleman from the Junagadh area of Gujarat. This Muslim grocer by the name of Nawab Khan had married a Parsi woman after converting her to Islam. This is the source where from the myth of Rajiv being a Parsi was derived. Rajiv's father Feroze was Feroze Khan before he married Indira, against Kamala Nehru's wishes. Feroze's mother's family name was Ghandy, often associated with Parsis and this was changed to Gandhi, sometime before his wedding with Indira, by an affidavit. The fact of the matter is that (and this fact can be found in many writings) Indira was very lonely.

Chased out of the Shantiniketan University by Guru Dev Rabindranath himself for misdemeanor, the lonely girl was all by herself, while father Jawahar was busy with politics, pretty women and illicit sex; the mother was in hospital. Feroze Khan, the grocer's son was then in England and he was quite sympathetic to Indira and soon enough she changed her religion, became a Muslim woman and married Feroze Khan in a London mosque. Nehru was not happy; Kamala was dead already or dying. The news of this marriage eventually reached Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Gandhi urgently called Nehru and practically ordered him to ask the young man to change his name from Khan to Gandhi. It had nothing to do with change of religion, from Islam to Hinduism for instance. It was just a case of a change of name by an affidavit. And so Feroze Khan became Feroze Gandhi. The surprising thing is that the apostle of truth, the old man soon to be declared India's Mahatma and the 'Father of the Nation' didn't mention this game of his in the famous book, 'My Experiments with Truth'. Why?

When they returned to India, a mock 'Vedic marriage' was instituted for public consumption. On this subject, writes M. O. Mathai (a longtime private secretary of Nehru) in his renowned (but now suppressed by the GOI) 'Reminiscences of the Nehru Age' on page 94, second paragraph: "For some inexplicable reason, Nehru allowed the marriage to be performed according to Vedic rites in 1942. An inter-religious and inter-caste marriage under Vedic rites at that time was not valid in law. To be legal, it had to be a civil marriage. It's a known fact that after Rajiv's birth Indira and Feroze lived separately, but they were not divorced. Feroze used to harass Nehru frequently for money and also interfere in Nehru's political activities. Nehru got fed up and left instructions not to allow him into the Prime Minister's residence Trimurthi Bhavan. Mathai writes that the death of Feroze came as a relief to Nehru and Indira. The death of Feroze in 1960 before he could consolidate his own political forces is itself a mystery.

Feroze had even planned to remarry. Those who try to keep tabs on our leaders in spite of all the suppressions and deliberate misinformation are aware of the fact that the second son of Indira (or Mrs. Feroze Khan) known as Sanjay Gandhi was not the son of Feroze. He was the son of another Moslem gentleman, Mohammad Yunus. Here, in passing, we might mention that the second son was originally named Sanjiv. It rhymed with Rajiv, the elder brother's name. When he was arrested by the British police in England and his passport impounded for having stolen a car it was changed to Sanjay. Krishna Menon was then India's High Commissioner in London. He offered to issue another passport to the felon who changed his name to Sanjay. Incidentally, Sanjay's marriage with the Sikh girl Menaka (now they call her Maneka for Indira Gandhi found the name of Lord Indra's court dancer rather offensive!) took place quite surprisingly in Mohammad Yunus' house in New Delhi. And the marriage with Menaka who was a model (She had modeled for Bombay Dyeing wearing just a towel) was not so ordinary either.

Sanjay was notorious in getting unwed young women pregnant. Menaka too was rendered pregnant by Sanjay. It was then that her father, Colonel Anand, threatened Sanjay with dire consequences if he did not marry her daughter. And that did the trick. Sanjay married Menaka. It was widely reported in Delhi at the time that Mohammad Yunus was unhappy at the marriage of Sanjay with Menaka; apparently he had wanted to get him married with a Muslim girl of his choice. It was Mohammad Yunus who cried the most when Sanjay died in the plane accident. In Yunus' book, 'Persons, Passions & Politics' one discovers that baby Sanjay had been circumcised following Islamic custom, although the reason stated was phimosis. It was always believed that Sanjay used to blackmail Indira Gandhi and due to this she used to turn a blind eye when Sanjay Gandhi started to run the country as though it were his personal fiefdom. Was he black mailing her with the secret of who his real father was? When the news of Sanjay's death reached Indira Gandhi, the first thing she wanted to know was about the bunch of keys which Sanjay had with him.

Nehru was no less a player in producing bastards. Atleast one case is very graphically described by M. O. Mathai in his "Reminiscences of the Nehru Age", page 206. Mathai writes: "In the autumn of 1948 (India became free in 1947 and a great deal of work needed to be done) a young woman from Benares arrived in New Delhi as a sanyasin named Shraddha Mata (an assumed and not a real name). She was a Sanskrit scholar well versed in the ancient Indian scriptures and mythology. People, including MPs, thronged to her to hear her discourses. One day S. D. Upadhyaya, Nehru's old employee, brought a letter in Hindi from Shraddha Mata. Nehru gave her an interview in the PM's house. As she departed, I noticed (Mathai is speaking here) that she was young, shapely and beautiful. Meetings with her became rather frequent, mostly after Nehru finished his work at night.

During one of Nehru's visits to Lucknow, Shraddha Mata turned up there, and Upadhyaya brought a letter from her as usual. Nehru sent her the reply; and she visited Nehru at midnight. "Suddenly Shraddha Mata disappeared. In November 1949 a convent in Bangalore sent a decent looking person to Delhi with a bundle of letters. He said that a young woman from northern India arrived at the convent a few months ago and gave birth to a baby boy. She refused to divulge her name or give any particulars about herself. She left the convent as soon as she was well enough to move out but left the child behind. She however forgot to take with her a small cloth bundle in which, among other things, several letters in Hindi were found. The Mother Superior, who was a foreigner, had the letters examined, and was told they were from the Prime Minister. The person who brought the letters surrendered them. "I (Mathai) made discreet inquiries repeatedly about the boy but failed to get a clue about his whereabouts. Convents in such matters are extremely tightlipped and secretive. Had I succeeded in locating the boy, I would have adopted him.

He must have grown up as a Catholic Christian blissfully ignorant of who his father was." Coming back to Rajiv Gandhi, we all know now that he changed his so called Parsi religion to become a Catholic to marry Sania Maino of Turin, Italy. Rajiv became Roberto. His daughter's name is Bianca and son's name is Raul. Quite cleverly the same names are presented to the people of India as Priyanka and Rahul. What is amazing is the extent of our people's ignorance in such matters. The press conference that Rajiv Gandhi gave in London after taking over as prime minister of India was very informative. In this press conference, Rajiv boasted that he was NOT a Hindu but a Parsi. Mind you, speaking of the Parsi religion, he had no Parsi ancestor at all. His grandmother (father's mother) had turned Muslim after having abandoned the Parsi religion to marry Nawab Khan. It is the western press that waged a blitz of misinformation on behalf of Rajiv. From the New York Times to the Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post, the big guns raised Rajiv to heaven.

The children's encyclopedias recorded that Rajiv was a qualified Mechanical Engineer from the revered University of Cambridge. No doubt US kids are among the most misinformed in the world today! The reality is that in all three years of his tenure at that University Rajiv had not passed a single examination. He had therefore to leave Cambridge without a certificate. Sonia too had the same benevolent treatment. She was stated to be a student in Cambridge. Such a description is calculated to mislead Indians. She was a student in Cambridge all right but not of the University of Cambridge but of one of those fly by night language schools where foreign students come to learn English. Sonia was working as an 'au pair' girl in Cambridge and trying to learn English at the same time. And surprise of surprises, Rajiv was even cremated as per vedic rites in full view of India's public. This is the Nehru dynasty that India worships and now an Italian leads a prestigious national party because of just one qualification - being married into the Nehru family. Maneka Gandhi itself is being accepted by the non-Congress parties not because she was a former model or an animal lover, but for her links to the Nehru family.

Saying that an Italian should not lead India will amount to narrow mindedness, but if Sania Maino (Sonia) had served India like say Mother Teresa or Annie Besant, i.e. in anyway on her own rights, then all Indians should be proud of her just as how proud we are of Mother Teresa.

Question: Who was Indira Gandhi's father?
Answer: (Pandit Jawaharlal) Nehru